Yarnbombing Kicks Off Science-Based Crochet Art Exhibit

I wish I were in Pennsylvania this month because there’s a new knit and crochet art exhibit there that I’d really like to check out in person. It’s a geeky fun science themed textile are exhibit. The month-long exhibit kicked off yesterday with a yarnbombing event.

The Exhibit

This conical crochet piece by Kathleen Greco of Jelly Yarns is inspired by coral

“Sticks, Hooks and the Mobius: Knit and Crochet Go Cerebral” opened yesterday at the Williams Center for the Arts at Lafeyette College. It is designed to celebrate the revival of crochet and knitting while pushing the boundaries of exploring how these crafts can relate to math and science, all done through artistic presentation. As you might expect, there will be hyperbolic crochet pieces on display and you can probably expect to see some coral reefs. But that’s old news when it comes to geek crochet and this exhibit aims to push the boundaries a little bit more than that. Expect unexpected things like a textile motherboards, fish embryos and even a virus.

Yarnbombing

The exhibit opened up with a yarnbombing event. Local thrift stores were scoured over the past few months to create a store of handmade afghans. These were used to yarnbomb the staircase leading from Downtown Easton up the hill to the college where the exhibit is located. An interesting twist on this yarnbomb display is that the thrift store price tags are being left on the items to show the fact that the handcrafted pieces have basically been discarded.

Special Events

If you happen to be in the area and want to see the exhibit in person, you may consider going on one of the special events days. For example, there’s a drop-in freeform stitch-a-thon planned for January 21st. Or go on January 28th to hear Kathy Greco of Jelly Yarns talk and show off this unique fun type of yarn. The exhibit has a closing reception on February 5th which will include a talk by mathematician Daina Taimina who is credited for figuring out that crochet can be used to explain mathematical principles that were otherwise abstract.